Notes:

Amantia - lover (Thessian)

Amara – Mother, as a title of respect (Thessian)

Breá Ber'ah - Combined form meaning beautiful and strange lover; Breá being a close lover, somewhere between Amantia and Siame (Thessian)

Hesaldia - Judea's personal performance corvette, translates to 'Escape' (Thessian)

Próidh - aggressive omnivorous mammal resembling a wolverine but weighing in at 70+ kg when full-grown. This extremely dangerous nocturnal hunter frequently takes prey many times larger than itself. As with all Thessian life, employs eezo to generate a biotic effect; utilizes a form of biotic charge to tackle and overcome prey (Thessian/Source: Irish for bear)

Siame - "one who is all", a loved one cherished above all others (Thessian/Source: CDN)

SILC - Synthetic Intelligence Life Codes

Sim're - "sister of my sister", a dear friend's loved one (Thessian/Source: CDN)

Dancing on the Wind

Thaptos Vineyards, Attena, Thessia – 15 April 2189

After their trip to T'Sere Shipwrights, Judea had spent much of the following day with Gabby, walking her through the designs of the three ships currently in production. Now, while Gabriella started work at the Estate, enjoying the challenge of improving the engineer's already wonderful designs, Judea was headed for the vineyards with Riana and Traynor. Privately, Judea hoped for Gabby's success for more than the sake of the Human and her babies; a more competitive design would also help Judea secure the majority of the top-ranking sales contracts… which could eventually lead to her reaching partner level – a highly prestigious, as well as lucrative, position.

That accomplishment would be a welcome option when it came time to retire from the Brokerage, a day which Judea awaited with mixed emotion. Miri would live longer than a normal Human but, even so, would not be around for more than a couple of centuries of Judea's life. Even if we find the time to have a child, the loss of Miri will crush me if I don't have something else to grab onto… and I love what I do at the yards… Please be successful at this endeavor, Gabby! I need it as much as you do!

She was pulled from her reflections by a console alarm, indicating they were approaching their destination. Leaning forward, she silenced the chime and took over manual control before triggering her comms. "We are nearing the Thaptos Vineyard. We will begin our descent in five minutes and be on the tarmac within twenty." She smirked and added, "Thank you for flying T'Soni Express Transport!"

While at T'Sere, Judea had arranged for one of her personal sport corvettes, Hesaldia – the translation of which means 'Escape' – to be maintenance checked and shuttled to the Thaptos Estate in time for their visit. Matriarch Tralis had been more than happy to accomodate, saying, "And help you enjoy your vacation? Absolutely!" When Judea had protested that the trip wasn't for her, Tralis had laughed. "By the Goddess, Judea! You absolutely love flying the Straights! Such a gift from this Samantha Traynor is just as much a present to you as to Riana... and don't you dare try to tell me any different!"

Now, as she circled the Estate on final approach, Judea couldn't help but chuckle at the memory. Tralis and the Shipyards would be such a good thing for Gabby. The Human would be Sim're to them all before she knew it, and the ties between T'Sere and T'Soni would be all the stronger for it. A voice from long ago cut in. "Judea Voni, as I live and breathe! Never thought I'd actually see you again... thought for sure some emergency would divert you, as always seems to be the case!"

"Savanna?" Judea's face erupted into a huge grin. "Is that you?"

"Goddess! How can you possible recognize my voice after so long?"

Laughing, Judea replied, "Because I never forget the ones who annoy me the most!"

"Hey! I remember you being nicer than that, Jude." Savana chuckled as she continued, "All joking aside, it is really good to hear your voice. Mother is absolutely beside herself, knowing you have come to visit. We can't wait to meet this Human who has so captured Riana's heart."

"I know... right?" Judea's voice became more solemn. "I never dreamed Ri would find someone so soon after Ryati… but go easy on Samantha. I honestly believe you'll soon see she is not a rebound love affair, but quite to the contrary… she is more than worthy of Riana's love."

"I'll try to keep that in mind… thanks, and see you in a few!"

"By the blue blazes, Riana! What has taken you so long to come visit us?" Matriarch Tristana 'Tris' Thaptos quite literally ran across the space between them and ignored everyone except Riana, who she immediately scooped into her arms and gave a huge hug before kissing her on the cheek. Holding her at arms' length, she grinned and exclaimed, "Goddess, it's good to see you! How have you been? You look wonderful!"

"Thank you… and it's good to see you too." Laughing, Riana asked, "And just which question would you like me to answer first?"

Regaining some of her composure, the smiling matriarch stepped back and smoothed her gown before glancing around the group. "Well, quite honestly, I suppose that can wait until we get in the house… so, I suppose you need to introduce me to your friend… other than Judea, of course."

Riana smiled softly and put her hand out towards Traynor, in invitation to come forward. "Just as many things have gotten so much better over the past year." She placed her arm around Sammi's waist and pulled her close before turning back to their host. "Matriarch Tristana, it is my great pleasure to introduce you to my Breá, Communications Officer and technical specialist extraordinaire… Samantha Traynor."

Freeing herself from Riana's grip, Traynor stepped forward, hands out with palms up and dipped her head slightly. "It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance, Matriarch. Riana speaks very highly of you."

Eyes bright in anticipation of getting to know this darker-skinned Human, Tris feathered her hands softly atop those offered. "The honor is mine, Ms Traynor. Anyone who manages to catch Riana's heart must be special, indeed."

"Oh, please… if it's acceptable, I would love for you to call me Sammi." Traynor flashed a grin at the Matriarch. "All my friends do… and any friend of Riana's is a friend of mine…" She paused before asking, "I believe… sim're… is the Asari word for that?"

Riana's eyes opened wide and she started to apologize for the informality of such a suggestion in reference to Tristana, but the Matriarch waved it off. "It's quite alright, Riana. You can explain the nuances to her later… besides which, I honestly believe she is more correct than not. You were never one of my employees. You are… were… the love of Ryati's life and will always be more like a daughter than anything else to me." Tristana's eyes teared up as she added, "I still miss her… every single day. May the Goddess forgive me, but I still curse Benezia and the arrogance that led to Ryati's death… and I hope you do not think lesser of me, because of it."

"I would never… but if my being here pains you…" Riana's eyes teared as well over the Matriarch's confession as she continued, "… then why would you agree to this visit?"

"Because in no way does the loss of Ryati negate my love for you, young one." Tristana offered up a sad smile. "Losing one was bad enough… the thought of losing you as well is more than I care to endure." She wiped away her tears. "Also, having you here with me means I have the opportunity to share memories of Ryati… assuming you are ready and willing to do the same."

Riana stepped up to the Matriarch and opened her arms in invitation, one which the Matriarch immediately took, wrapping the maiden in her arms and holding tight as Riana mumbled into her bosom. "I have already shared many of them with Sammi… so, yes; I am ready to share more of the memories of my time spent with your daughter, Matriarch." She pulled back and let out a soft chuckle, wiping her own tears away. "Much more so than when we last saw one another… when her death was so recent… and painful. But I do not think sharing such out here on the tarmac is the proper place to do so."

Laughing in spite of her tears, Tristana released the maiden. "Truer words have never been spoken. Come. Let us all make our way to the house and get you settled in for your stay."

Once they were inside and had dropped their bags in their rooms, Riana took Traynor on a quick tour of the grounds, while Judea went in search of the Thaptos Matriarch. "The house is looking good… and the vineyard seems to have either not been hit at all by the Reapers… or has recovered remarkably quickly."

Tristana's eyes met the intriguing gold-fleck of Jude's eyes and she smiled. "Riana's and your warnings were taken to heart, Judea. Never, in all the years I have known the two of you, would I ever say you were prone to exaggeration or flights of hysteria. So, when you told us there was something horrible headed toward us and we needed to hide away, we simply… believed you."

"Thank you for trusting us so completely… seeing as we couldn't exactly explain over an unsecured comm." Judea looked around the common area and commented sadly, "I have yet to see Corlissa…"

The Matriarch shook her head as she responded, "And you very likely will not, Judea. Her family was hard-hit in Serrice, so she has returned to take over their holdings. As much as I appreciated her excellent handing of my House, I didn't have to think twice about releasing her when she asked." Tris hung her head as she whispered, "Her family was not so lucky as ours; Corli lost both her mother and her youngest daughter, though not from lack of trying to prevent such from happening." Tris' eyes came back up and she let out a quiet sigh. "She passed on the warning, but the attack on the city was simply too savage… too intense! Little was spared. Her oldest, Radisia, survived… and is now the direct heir should something happen to Corli… but Radisia has no desire to return home as of yet; she is in formal commando training in Anerzesa and desires to complete the full course."

"Isn't she my age… or close to it?" Judea frowned. "That's rather old to be in training…"

"Yes, it is, but she ended up on a commando squad during the war… left little choice in the matter when the Reapers dropped on their heads." Tris smiled lightly. "While it was fight or die, it turns out she has an instinct for fighting that cannot be supplanted by any amount of training. Having such a natural talent, she decided to make it a career. I do believe her intent is to return home and take a position in the City Guard."

"That's too bad," Judea shrugged. "If she's that good, she could earn a lot more with a High House… but likely can't, because she's first in line to inherit the family holdings. Though, she still has options; she could hire a manager and continue to do what she loves."

"True… but their losses left emotional scars, which is why she intends to return home… to what she considers the best of both worlds – commando by day and home with what remains of her family by night… or vice-versa, depending on her schedule," Tris chuckled softly, though a profound sadness still tainted her voice. "Besides which, there are certainly worse places to live than the outskirts of Serrice!"

"Ah… there is always that," Judea answered with a smile. "They have rebuilt amazingly fast… like you."

"No. Not like us. They have their widespread, urban networks to thank… because the technology and manufacturing centers were specifically targeted… not the more rural outskirts. Our recovery, on the other hand, is mostly compliments of the SILC, for which I am extremely grateful." Tris shook her head in astonishment. "Working night and day without rest… like the machines they are… but, yet… they are more than pure machines. At least, they appear so to me. They have individual personalities… and they most definitely helped us get reestablished here. We would be nowhere near where we are now, had they not come here and assisted in the reconstruction." Her voice grew solemn. "We owe them a debt we can never possibly repay."

"Perhaps you will find a way to do so, eventually… but, honestly? I doubt they even see it as a debt." Judea smiled softly as she continued, "They are like children… entranced simply by the opportunity to learn about organics. Being given the chance to live and work next to you for the duration of time it took to get you back up and running is likely all the reward they desired."

"Well, that and some of our precious metals stores," Tris smirked. "But, joking aside, I did not begrudge them even one gram of it! They needed it more than we did, to construct more units, and we needed their help, so it was a fair trade." She suddenly laughed. "All that, simply to say that my new House Steward is named Kanesha Coroni and goes by Kaya. I believe she's doing some shopping for dinner this evening, so she should be coming back relatively soon. I will introduce you then."

"Sounds good to me." Judea fell silent, taking in the view of the restored vineyards through the window as she sipped her fruit juice.

After a few moments, the Matriarch broke the quiet by hesitantly asking, "How is your mother?"

Judea smiled, "Alive and well, still living at T'Soni House Armali. She decided to stay and is now employed as their Fleet Manager!" Judea blinked rapidly, understanding the reason for the matriarch's caution. "I haven't been very good about keeping you apprised of our status since the war… I simply assumed you knew! We are all doing quite well, thank you."

"Oh, thank the Goddess…" Tris breathed an audible sigh of relief before she continued, "Your silence worried me, thinking you did not want to have to explain…" She left the rest unsaid and simply smiled. "But it is good to know there is no longer any reason to worry… We have all been blessed." She paused only slightly before asking about another. "And Miranda?"

"Wonderful, as always," Judea answered with a soft smile. "I imagine you expected her to come along, but she is busy treating Shepard's latest injuries. The assault on an old Cerberus station was met with unexpected resistance." She met the Matriarch's eyes and added, reassuringly, "No one was badly injured… but Shepard requires special care due to her unique physiology." She paused, suddenly realizing she may have said too much. "Which is not common knowledge… so, please, don't ask me to explain."

"Just tell her, Jude." Riana's voice cut in from the side as she and Traynor entered. "Better she knows the full truth of it than be making errant assumptions."

"Do you not think Shepard and Liara will be angry?"

"No. They know the truth will come out eventually. It has to." Riana grinned and looked at the Matriarch. "No Human has ever lived to be a thousand years old… it's bound to raise some questions as she goes along, seeming to never age a day."

"A thousand years?" Tris glanced back and forth between her two Asari guests. "What are you talking about? Is that even possible for a Human?"

"After Shepard was kidnapped by Cerberus, she was… changed." Riana sat down on the nearest couch, pulling Sammi down beside her. "They possessed technology to strengthen her tissues and bones… and inserted specialized repair nanites into her system, which were designed to constantly fix any damage… right down to a molecular level… that Shepard incurs. The processes were incredibly intrusive… and expensive, nearly bankrupting Cerberus… but are what helped her survive the most horrific of battles."

"She suffered greatly," added Riana, "because the tech kept her alive when she should have died and conscious through pain she never should have endured… but it helped her save us all. However, now, anesthesia is particularly difficult…"

"Oh, Goddess!" Tristana's eyes went wide. "All those surgeries…?"

"Yes. Any operation had to be done very carefully, under very special conditions… Otherwise, Shepard would have suffered through continuous extreme pain." Judea shuddered. "Miri once told me Cerberus just wanted her alive… So, since pain medications were not easy to come by during the war, especially for a rogue organization, Shepard was in a medically induced coma most of the time." Judea shook her head in disgust. "The Illusive Man simply refused to let them 'waste' any on her, so, while her body reacted to the pain, her mind, fortunately, had neither recognition nor memory of it."

"That… that's… monstrous!" The very idea had the Matriarch standing from her seat.

"Yes, it was… but it is over and done… and Shepard is alive today because of it, as are we all." Judea actually smiled as she rose from her seat and placed a comforting hand on Tris' arm. She continued quietly, "And, now, she can look forward a full, Asari life with Lady Liara and House T'Soni. If you asked her, I guarantee the Spectre would say it was worth every bit of pain and sacrifice to be where she is now. But I hope that you do not, as it was not my secret to reveal."

Tris momentarily closed her eyes as she took a deep cleansing breath. When she reopened them, she was the epitome of serenity as she responded, "You have no fear of that… and, as you stated, we would all figure it out soon enough, especially the Asari and Krogan who know her, who will be around long enough to notice." She calmly studied Judea, with the intent to make sure she had eased the Maiden's fears before leaning in to give her a hug of assurance.

Suddenly, Tris' eyes widened almost imperceptibly as she realized Judea had changed… or, at the very least, is well on her way to becoming a Matron! I have to wonder if this is why Miranda was so willing to stay behind at the Estate? The sexual tension between them right now must be excruciating with such constant proximity within the confines of a ship! She whispered conspiratorially, "Shepard's secret is safe with me… as is yours."

"Thank you, Matriarch." Judea visibly relaxed with Tristana's first statement, then tensed again with her second. "My secret? How is that my… Oh, tides!" Involuntarily, her hand came up to stroke her Le'wĕth where they met her collar. "I thought my collar was appropriately high enough…"

The Matriarch smiled as she reached up to pull Judea's hand down, saying quietly, "It is… and I never would have noticed, had I not been hugging you close enough to see down your neck, Judea. Relax." She pushed back, smiling as she glanced at Riana and Sammi. "Now, how about those refreshments I spoke of? Some snacks and a bit of wine?"

Riana grinned before answering from the side as she and Traynor rose from the couch. "Yes… absolutely! Perhaps a bit of your Blue Rose Wine? Which, I am sure, will be positively divine, as always."

"Certainly! But I must confess we haven't yet produced a new batch… so any cases we have are coming up from the cellars, not fresh from the barrels." She smiled hopefully as she continued, "Perhaps this year's crop will be sweet enough, now that the air has been cleared of the smoke of war. Last year, we simply plowed the crop under."

"What a waste!" Judea exclaimed. "Though, with the atmospheric cleansers running, I trust that this year's crop will be just fine."

"I most certainly hope so." Turning and gliding toward the wine cabinet, the Matriarch's voice was cheery as she said, "Enough talk of the past… let us celebrate our reunion and make a toast to the future!"

Oihana Forest, Attena, Thessia – 16 April 2189

The next morning, Judea was up early, eager to take Hesaldia for a spin to reacquaint herself with the controls, seeing as it had been more than five years since she had piloted her private performance corvette. While most ships of her class were in the fifty-meter range, Hesaldia was significantly smaller, coming in at just over thirty-seven meters in length.

Equipped with the standard drive core designed for a much larger and bulkier ship, the sport corvette was much sleeker and faster than others in her class. Technically a warship classification, Hesaldia was also much lighter, because she had no weapons systems or ammunition caches within – items which tended to be extremely heavy. Instead, Judea had utilized the vacant spaces to hold enhanced flight and performance control systems, also giving the ship much improved maneuverability over similar vessels.

Once she was airborn, Judea pointed the ship toward one of the closer rainforests. She would use that airspace to test the craft's responsiveness and speed, to ensure nothing was wrong with either the flight controls – or my own reflexes! – as she hadn't honestly flown a sport craft of any type since Shepard's disappearance. Liara with the Brokerage, and the war, had kept them all rather busy since that time, leaving no openings for vacations or test flights of any nature.

Arriving over the forest, a light touch on the controls and Hesaldia leapt forward like a hungry Próidh, eager for a kill. Grinning broadly, Judea eased the ship through a gentle roll before accelerating yet again into a steep climb. Just as the craft began to shudder with gravitational resistance, she rolled it over and plunged downward, gathering speed as she rushed toward the canopy far below. She suddenly pulled up, Hesaldia responding quickly and leveling off above the trees for only the briefest of moments before Judea began a lazy, open spiral, parallel to the treetops.

At that point, T'Sere Shipwrights Assistant Director of Operations Trina T'Sere – who had personally delivered the ship and come along for the check-out ride – muttered, "By the blazes, Voni! Are you trying to kill us… or just make me sick?"

"Neither!" Judea released a hearty laugh and leveled the craft, less than 100 meters above the canopy, and accelerated Hesaldia to her top speed. As the trees whipped by beneath the ship as nothing more than a greenish-blue blur, she added, "With the inertial dampeners, you shouldn't be feeling any ill-effects. I certainly am not… are you truly feeling ill?"

"It's not the physical affects, you Pyjak." Trina turned to her with a grin. "It's the fear of imminent death at the finish of every loop… watching those damn trees reaching up at us as you level off at the bottom of every roll. What would happen if a flock of birds suddenly burst from the trees?"

"We would be fine… but the flock could possibly suffer from the airwash… which could affect their flight ability." Judea frowned at the thought and increased the ship's pitch enough for a gentle climb. "You are correct… I should be more respectful of their habitat and give them more room." She turned to her friend and smiled apologetically. "Sorry. I should be more considerate."

"I was kind of joking, Jude," Trina smirked. "But I will admit... I do feel better with more clearance between us and the trees, no matter how good the ship or how great the pilot."

"Now you're just being a smartass." Judea grinned… just as she gave the throttle another bump and threw the ship into a tight climbing spiral before ending in level flight… upside down, the combined effect of which was a high-pitched squeal of protest from the person in the other seat.

Dancing Bird Straits, Attena, Thessia – 16 April 2189

Immediately following lunch, Judea was once more in the pilot's seat, this time with Riana in the co-pilot's chair beside her and Traynor sitting behind, in what would be the Weapon's Officer's seat in a traditional corvette. The flight to the western shore of the continent was a relatively quick one, given the distance from the Vineyards to the far coast.

"She's a beauty, Judea!" Once they had gotten airborne and were enroute, Sammi had undone her harness to stand behind Riana's seat, her right hand resting softly on Riana's shoulder. "The design is incredible… and the seemingly effortless speed? Amazing!"

"You'll love it when we get to the Straits, then." Judea paused and pointed. "Which are just now beginning to appear above the treetops. See them? Right there."

"Goddess," Riana muttered in awe. "Just how tall are they?"

"Depends on the spire," Judea grinned. "That's what makes them so much fun to fly! They present quite the variety of obstacles… from high-reaching, thin spikes to short, robust columns… and then there are the arches and hoops! Those are the most fun… but most are too small to fly this craft under or through. Most can only be done in an aircar."

"An aircar?" Traynor paled a bit. "If the place is so popular, will we need to worry about collisions?"

Judea chuckled before responding, "Not at all." Glancing over her shoulder at the specialist, she continued, "The Straights are such a popular destination for sport enthusiasts, there's actually a schedule. We'll have the entire airspace to ourselves for a full hour… The time slot has quite literally been booked since you spoke with Tris."

"What do you mean… literally?" Riana's face held a puzzled expression.

"While Sammi was speaking with Tris, Savanna was on the comm with the airspace director, inquiring about availability. That's why Tris gave you the dates she did… and nothing sooner. The Straights were booked out."

"Four months in advance?" Traynor's high pitch reflected her surprise.

"Yes. Four months." Judea smiled. "I was actually surprised it wasn't longer." Her grin faltered as she continued sadly, "It's likely many people aren't back to pleasure flying, so it's just designers and builders booking the time slots… and, I imagine, they aren't selling too many sport craft right now, so no need to demonstrate maneuverability and control responsiveness at locations like this one."

"All the better for us, then." Sammi reached over and gave Judea's shoulder a squeeze. "The market will come back, Judea. As you heard from Gabby… Thessia is leaps and bounds ahead of Sol. We have the pleasure of still being alive, so we'll all get there eventually."

"You're right." Casting off her sudden pall just as quickly as it had come upon her, the pilot grinned. "Best retake your seat and buckle up, Ms Traynor… The ride is about to get a lot more exciting!"

After thirty minutes – which seemed to pass much quicker than possible – Riana asked Judea to ease up and then glanced behind her. Undoing her harness and climbing from the seat, she grinned cheekily at her Breá Ber'ah. "You simply must sit up here for a bit, Sammi! You arranged for this whole thing, so absolutely need to have a front row seat for a bit… it's frightening and fascinating, all at the same time!" When her lover hesitated, Riana added, "Oh, come on! You really do need to experience this. The Hesaldia truly is an amazing craft…" Laughing, she finished, "… and you can't see it from the back seat… especially with your eyes slammed closed!"

"Oh… fine!" Accepting the obvious challenge, Traynor unbuckled and swapped places with Riana, quickly realizing just how much more – expansive – the view truly was from the co-pilot seat. "Wow. Your screen design really is amazing, Judea! I practially feel like I'm perched on a platform outside the ship!" Looking down at the water below, she gulped, "I didn't realize she had a clear bottom with a retractable cover... now I see why Ri described it as frightening."

"Are you ready to really see how she flies?" Judea cocked her head in question at the somewhat pale woman in the seat next to hers. When she received a cautious nod in response, she grinned. "Strap in tight… You're about to get the ride of your life."

Remembering hanging from her battle harness in the Normandy during the numerous battles during the Reaper War, Traynor initially doubted Judea's words, but it was not long before she recognized her error in judgment. Judea piloted the Hesaldia as if it was an extension of her own body, twisting and turning through the field of spires, doing pirouettes above the highest tops before diving down along their steep sides, to emerge from the dive mere meters above the sea, drawing vortexes of water in their wake as they sped across the surface before beginning to ascend anew. The first dive, Traynor found herself picking her feet up off the floor as the craft leveled out at the water's edge, as if trying to keep her feet from dragging in the waves.

Judea laughed with glee at Traynor's squeaks… and occasional outright screams. One in particular had Traynor cussing the pilot. The Hesaldia streaked straight toward a tall finger of land that jutted out from the coast, the slanted cliff looming larger by the moment. Finally, Traynor saw what appeared to be a tiny hole in the face of the wall, asking in disbelief, "Judea… What are you doing?"

"Exactly what you fear we're going to do… threading the formation that is known as Dancing Bird Needle."

Judea glanced over, a teasing smirk on her face as Traynor whispered, "But it looks so… small!"

"Oh, it is… especially in respect to a ship the size of Hesaldia. She's almost too big to fit."

"What?" Traynor squeaked out in disbelief.

At that, Judea burst out laughing. "I did say almost, Sammi." Her face still held a wide grin as she continued, "We'll fit… I've done it dozens of times," while never pulling back on the throttle.

They sped toward the tiny hole in the cliffside, the walls close enough that the airwash pulled dust and dirt from the rock faces as they sped through. The very moment they completed the transit, Judea placed the corvette into a tight victory roll, whooping in excitement. "Goddess, but I do love that maneuver!"

Even Riana was caught offguard, shouting from the back seat, "By the blazes, Jude! That was insane… especially for you!" She let out a giddy laugh and continued, "I always considered you the straight-laced conservative one in the bunch!"

"I am…" Judea placed the ship back into level flight before turning around, a wide grin of satisfaction spreading across her face. "But she's my ship from the ground up and I know exactly what she's capable of… and, as I said before, I've done it dozens of times."

Just then, a voice came over the comm unit. "Nicely done, Hesaldia. Only one test pilot I know can pull off a stunt like that with a corvette at max velocity, Judea. Good to know you survived the war."

Judea was laughing as she keyed her mic. "And this must be Chief Controller Mireya… Good to hear your voice as well, Rey."

"You have time to stop in at Control? Maybe stay for lunch?"

Judea looked across at her passengers, seeing as they were the guests of honor for this particular flight. When they both smiled and nodded, she responded, "Can do, if you can take three. I was giving a personal demonstration to some very special friends."

"Excellent!" the cheery voice responded. "I'll log you out of the formation and see you in ten?"

"Understood, Control. See you soon!"

Thaptos Vineyards, Attena, Thessia – 18 April 2189

Riana sighed and sat back, opening her tired eyes as the meld with the Matriarch dropped. Both wiped tears from their eyes, sad smiles crossing their faces. "Thank you, Tris… That was positively wonderful, however much it may have torn at our hearts."

"No thanks necessary, Ri." Tristana's voice hitched at the familiar nickname that applied to both Liara's First and to her own daughter. "It fills my heart with joy to know that Ryati was so loved and respected by the other commandos… and that she had your love to fill her nights. A mother can wish for nothing more for their child than that."

"Except, perhaps, that she still be around for more of the same." Riana wiped away a new flood of tears that had welled onto her cheeks to run down her face.

"But we must trust in the Goddess… that she meant for you to be with Sammi, for whatever her reasons may be." Tris paused to take a deep breath and gather herself before continuing, "No matter how much it may pain those of us Ryati left behind with her unexpected early departure from this world."

Riana sniffed and reached out to take the Matriarch's hand. "It gladdens me, to know I can give you some relief from the pain, simply by sharing my memories with you."

"You have no idea how much you have lightened my heart, Riana." The Matriarch accepted and gently squeezed the offered hand. "I never thought I would ever begin to forgive Benezia… but knowing now what she managed… How she delayed Saren… and was able to provide Shepard and Liara with the information they needed to stop Sovereign and buy us much needed time…" Tristana stopped and shook her head. "I am not quite there yet, but you have given me sufficient justification for a pause in my hatred. Perhaps, in time…"

"You are in good company." Riana shrugged. "Many of the Matriarchs of the high houses still blame her… because she did not raise her concerns to them, instead choosing to go out on her own. You are not alone in blaming Benezia's hubris for what befell us all."

"Still… Benezia was the best of us all… and had succeeded at negotiations no others would even attempt…"

As Tris' words tapered off, Riana gave her hand another squeeze before letting go and continuing for the Matriarch. "… but part of wisdom is knowing when things are beyond you… and seeking assistance when necessary."

"Perhaps." Tris stood from the comfortable couch and stretched, glancing at her young friend. "But we have spent enough time inside on such a beautiful day. Care to find Sammi… and join me on a walk through the vineyard, to check on the progress of this year's new plantings?"

"Sounds wonderful, Amara." Riana smiled and stood beside the Matriarch. "As far as I know, Sammi is likely still in the communications room, working on your security encryption algorithms." She chuckled and shook her head, adding, "I honestly believe she loves doing things like that as much as Judea loves flying… maybe even more!"

"It would seem Sammi is the perfect match for you, Riana. I just wish…" Tris paused, as if unsure how to say what troubled her about the relationship.

"You're worried Sammi's short lifespan will leave me an emotional wreck when she dies, and I cannot say I haven't thought about it." Riana sighed before continuing. "Sammi is the most caring, loving individual I have ever met. She is absolutely devoted to me. I was badly injured in the temple of Athame near the end of the war. Sammi was by my side almost continuously. She spent hours helping me regain my strength as I recovered. I will take whatever time the Goddess allows her to spend in my life and enjoy every minute of it. I love her with every fiber of my being."

The Matriarch chuckled. "It is obvious to anyone with eyes and ears that you two are a loving couple. I pray the Goddess grants Ms Traynor an exceedingly long, healthy life."